Leonardo da Vinci was undoubtedly a man whose mind was too great for one lifetime. His art is among the most studied in the world, and his private writings are famous for having mirror-writing techniques, meaning he wrote from right to left. In fact, most of his private notes are written this way. So, people have dug deep into his life to find a real da Vinci code.
So, is there truth in this for the writing? The mirror style is distinct, and some believe he wrote this way for secrecy, like a code. However, historians and scholars of Leonardo do not consider this to be a likely explanation. The writing would not have been difficult to decipher. Plus, Leonardo would write left to right when the material was meant to be read.
One theory is also the most boring. Since Leonardo da Vinci was left-handed, the right to left style may have just felt the most natural for him. Some add to this theory that he may have written this way to merely prevent his hand from being dragged across wet ink.
But what about the Mona Lisa or the Last Supper? They are among the most analyzed paintings in existence. Many people online have claimed to find secret messages in the Mona Lisa or the Last Supper, but very few are taken seriously. Many may simply be examples of pattern-seeking or pareidolia. Plus, the Louvre is right that age doesn’t help things. The painting is quite old with many cracks in the paint, leading many to find symbols that aren’t there. Perhaps the most prominent theory comes from art researcher Silvano Vinceti, who claimed to find inscriptions such as letters, initials, and numbers in the Mona Lisa. This, too, has largely been rejected by other art historians and scholars. The Louvre also commented that Vinceti didn’t directly examine the original painting. The Louvre’s own examination found no evidence for these kinds of inscriptions. Though, anyone eager about conspiracies will probably say the Louvre is hiding something.
That still leaves the Last Supper. Surely there’s something there. There’s a hidden message or code in there, there must be, right? Well, probably not. Sure, the painting does have a lot of symbolism and is visually complex with a lot of emotion in it. But that doesn’t mean there’s a secret code buried in there.
Many ‘discovered’ messages are, like before, a mix of age and pattern-seeking. But most doesn’t mean all. A rather notable case is some have actually suspected that the figure to the right of Jesus (that is your left) in the painting is not the Apostle John, and that person is instead Mary Magdalene. This undoubtedly sound’s like Dan Brown’s territory, largely popularized by his work of fiction, The Da Vinci Code, that supposes Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married. This, of course, has been overwhelmingly rejected by scholars and Church authorities. Simply, there is no good evidence to even suggest that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were ever married. There is a rather simple explanation for why the Apostle John appears almost feminine – da Vinci, like others at the time, depicted some men as being soft-featured.
So, Is There a Real Da Vinci Code?
Leonardo da Vinci certainly had a fondness complexity and the intricate. We are talking about dozens of material crammed full of fascinating designs, beautiful symbolism, and unrivaled artistry. It is certainly possible that there is something code-like in there somewhere. We certainly would not put it past da Vinci to make something that would elude any mind that wasn’t his own.
But that is not the same as saying he a highly detailed system of secret codes.
His mirror writing, for instance, could have a practical explanation. Many claimed secret inscriptions, numbers, or characters in his art are not convincing.
And this is what makes da Vinci so fascinating. We don’t actually need any of that. His work alone is already so complex, intricate, and symbolic. Secret layers to that just seems so unnecessary.
But who knows? Maybe the real Da Vinci code is just trying to understand how one mind could be behind it all.